Checklist of Wadi Hassan flora, Northeastern Badia, Jordan

Abstract

In this study, we survey the plant diversity of Wadi Hassan, which is located in the Northeastern Badia of Jordan, about 120 km east of Amman. All plant species were collected and herbarium specimens have been prepared, identified and deposited at the University of Jordan herbarium (Department of Biology, Faculty of Science). The final plant checklist includes 206 species belonging to 138 genera and 35 families. The most diverse families are Compositae (20.5%), Cruciferae (10.2%), Leguminosae (8.3%) and Boraginaceae (6.8%), followed by Caryophyllaceae and Gramineae (5.4%). These six families represent 60% of the total families recognized in the study area, while nine families each are represented by only one species. Most plants recorded are annual plants (61%), some plants are hemicryptophtes (18%) and camaephytes (15%), while the least frequent life form class was the phanerophyte shrub and perennial (0.5%). Chorological characteristics of the recorded flora show that Saharo-Arabian Region elements, Irano-Turanian elements and Mediterranean elements constitute (58%) of the total flora. This research shows that even small portion of the Jordan Badia such as the Wadi Hassan plant community has high species diversity. Thus, we recommended further of the unexplored Wadi plants communities of the Jordan Badia.